Indian Economy grows 7.9%,

Indian economy grew by a significant 7.9 per cent in the second quarter of this fiscal, up from 6.1 per cent in the previous quarter, essentially due to a good showing by the industry and the services sector. The growth compares favourably to 7.7 per cent recorded in the July-September quarter in the previous year. The economy rose by 7 per cent in the first half ending September 30 of the current fiscal on the back of stimulus packages and revival of domestic demand, giving hopes that final figures for the year could be much higher. The government, including Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the Reserve Bank and the Planning Commission had predicted a growth of about 6-7 per cent, while global agencies and analysts forecast it to be even lower.
Analysts were expecting a growth rate of 6.1-6.6 per cent in the second quarter. The economic growth of close to eight per cent in the second quarter is also remarkable in the context of just 0.9 per cent expansion in farm production due to a weak monsoon and continued contraction in exports due to slackening demand overseas. However, the manufacturing sector grew by 9.2 per cent in the July-September period compared to 5.1 per cent in the corresponding period of last fiscal and mining and quarrying by 9.5 per cent versus 3.7 per cent recorded in FY09. Community, social and personal services expanded by double digit at 12.7 per cent against nine per cent.